Microplastic in fishes: the first report from a Himalayan River — Alaknanda

Abstract

In the present study, we tried to understand MPs ingestion by ve sh species of different feeding habits namely, Schizothorax richardsonii and Crossocheilus latius (herbivore), Cyprinus carpio, Tor chelenoid (omnivore), and Botia horii (carnivore). The shes were sampled from the patch of the Himalayan river, Alaknanda (one of the headwaters of river Ganges) at Srinagar, Garhwal, Uttarakhand. The sh gut samples were digested, ltered and the number of MPs was then counted microscopically. The results revealed that all the species were contaminated with MPs and the rate of MP ingestion varied with feeding habits. Fish Tor chelenoid, the omnivore, was observed to have maximum MPs. Among the analyzed particles, bers (66%) were the most dominant type chemically characterized as HDPE, PP, and polyester. This study will contribute as a reference for forthcoming research as it explains the ingestion of MPs by shes of a Himalayan River. HIGHLIGHTSFirst report of MPs in the sh from a Himalayan river Fish gut analysis revealed a high number of MPs River Alaknanda is full of MP bers Herbivorous sh ingest more MPs than carnivorous Most frequent types of MPs were High-Density Poly Ethylene and Polypropylene